e-Audio, 10:22:36
Narrated by: Tamika Katon-Donegal
Release Date: November 29, 2022
Published by: Recorded Books, Inc.
Read from: November 29 – December 2, 2022
Stand-alone
Source: Netgalley Audio (I received a copy of this book from the Publisher & Netgalley in exchange for a just and honest review. This did nothing to influence my review.)
TW: Cancer, Grief, Loss of a grandparent/parent, Homophobia, Gun Violence, Alcoholism, Hate Crime, Homophobia, Murder, Abandonment
For Readers Interested In: Romance, LGBTQ+, Coming of Age, Realistic Fiction, Contemporary, YAWhat’s more important? Knowing the truth or keeping the peace?
Seventeen-year-old Avery Anderson is convinced her senior year is ruined when she’s uprooted from her life in DC and forced into the hostile home of her terminally ill grandmother, Mama Letty. The tension between Avery’s mom and Mama Letty makes for a frosty arrival and unearths past drama they refuse to talk about. Every time Avery tries to look deeper, she’s turned away, leaving her desperate to learn the secrets that split her family in two.
While tempers flare in her avoidant family, Avery finds friendship in unexpected places: in Simone Cole, her captivating next-door neighbor, and Jade Oliver, daughter of the town’s most prominent family—whose mother’s murder remains unsolved.
As the three girls grow closer—Avery and Simone’s friendship blossoming into romance—the sharp-edged opinions of their small southern town begin to hint at something insidious underneath. The racist history of Bardell, Georgia is rooted in Avery’s family in ways she can’t even imagine. With Mama Letty’s health dwindling every day, Avery must decide if digging for the truth is worth toppling the delicate relationships she’s built in Bardell—or if some things are better left buried.
*MY THOUGHTS*
As I do with all books, I went into this blind. I don’t know why I was thinking it was going to be a romance that made me laugh and swoon. It was more like a coming of age murder mystery that also had a romance in it. And as you know, because it’s a coming of age book, there’s a lot of stuff the main character learns and finds out about themself. And let me just say, this was the most fun I’ve had with a coming of age book in a long time.
Hands down, the best part of this was the characters. I LOVED Avery. She was angsty and serious and so so authentic. I really loved it. She was so mature for her age! I loved the way she took no ish from anyone, including her mom lol Then there was her mama, her grandma, her dad, and of course Simone and Jade. Every single person in this book brought something to the book. I hate when you can automatically tell what each character is there for. But this wasn’t like that at all. Her grandmother brought the drama, her mom and dad were there for the angst (she IS a teen after all), and Simone is there for the love inerest. And every time, no matter who was on the page, I was stuck to the pages. (Ear phones? This was the audio lol)
The plot of this was immaculate. I would have liked it a bit more, if we had a little more focus on the murder mystery. I also think the reason it wasn’t written that way was because it would take some of the focus away from her grandma’s story, so I guess it was ok the way it was. Because Lordt knows she needed all the front page time she could get. Now the pacing tho, I think could have been a little better. For it to be less than 300 pages, it seemed awfully long. I think spreading some of the info out and adding more to the story could have helped a tiny bit.
I know I like a book when I go through all my emotions while I read it. And this is one of those books. I swooned, I laughed, I SOBBED, like I’m being so serious, I felt all the things. I cannot wait until more of y’all read this book and tell me more about how you also cried. Because if you don’t I will think something is broken within you. Because yo, I was sobbing into my lunch. I thank goodness for working from home still because I don’t think I would have been able to make it if I had read that part in public. But I don’t want you to get caught up in all the parts that deal with grief like the look at the generational trauma that started with Momma Letty and Ray. I also swooned when Avery and Simone transformed from friends to something more, when her grandma was talking about Ray, even when her parents were just dancing in the kitchen. I definitely laughed when Simone was saying what she smelled like after work and how they made fun of Jade’s parents. Hammonds had to have put their heart into this book because the vice grip this book had on mine was crazy.
The narrator brought something to this that I don’t think anyone else could have. And I’m so for real. I’ve only listened to one other book that she narrated, but her voice felt so familiar and comforting. And the way she was able to change the voices, especially Mama Letty, an elderly and sick individual was gold. A lot of times when I see narrators try that and it’s always so weird. But Tamika did it with no problems. She had me invested.
I dare say this is one of my favorite books all year. I really need more of you to read this book. I guess I’m just going to have to yell it from the rooftops now because Y’ALL NEED TO READ THIS! I really hope you get it in your hands soon. I need more people to talk about it with because days later I am still thinking about this book!
Overall, I give this
